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What to Expect Along Florida’s Gulf Coast as Snowbird Season Arrives

Many popular beach towns were damaged during recent hurricanes

damage shown after a hurricane
A destroyed lifeguard station is seen in Venice, Florida, after Hurricane Milton hit the state on Oct. 9, 2024. Florida’s Gulf Coast beaches are recovering after the double punch of hurricanes Helene and Milton.
Getty Images
By

Terry Ward,

 
AARP
Published November 13, 2024

Living in Tampa, Florida, I’ve gotten spoiled by beautiful beaches. But when I ventured to Clearwater Beach, Florida, on Oct. 29 – after hurricanes Helene and Milton did considerable damage to a large swath of Florida’s Gulf Coast – the sand seemed a few shades brighter and the sky just a touch bluer than I remembered.

Maybe it was because, like many people, I wasn’t sure what to expect a month on from the storms that affected so much of Florida’s Gulf coastline.

To recap: Helene made landfall near Perry in the Big Bend area Sept. 26, while Milton’s eye crossed over Siesta Key, just south of Sarasota, on Oct. 9.

Visit Florida, the state tourism board, estimates 32.8 million boomers traveled to Florida in 2023. The state was the number one destination for adults 50 and older in AARP’s 2024 Travel Trends report.

Many well-known Florida beaches popular with snowbirds during the winter (snowbird season runs between October and April) have been in full-on recovery mode since disastrous flooding and wind damage from the storms ravaged the area and beyond.

Driving around Clearwater Beach, I noticed only traces of sand still on the streets from the storms, along with towering pyramids of it piled near shoreline parking lots. The area’s larger hotels, including the JW Marriott Clearwater Beach Resort & Spa, Sandpearl Resort and Hilton Clearwater Beach Resort & Spa, were open for business and looked largely unscathed, although the beach itself was noticeably empty on this beautiful, late-October day.

A couple vacationing from Michigan was on the sand.

“It looks better than we thought it would,” says John Klager.

His wife, Rita, 57, says she was disappointed with the water (a light rust color where it lapped the sand), “but other than that I’m surprised by how good the buildings look,” she says. The couple had just enjoyed lunch nearby at The Salty Crab Bar & Grill and were staying with a friend in nearby Dunedin before heading across the state to Cocoa Beach to leave on a cruise.

Driving south along the coast from Clearwater Beach onto Sand Key and through Belleair and Indian Rocks Beach, the storm damage became more evident. Streets were lined with piles of flood-destroyed furnishings and lawn debris awaited removal. Many beach approaches in Indian Rocks Beach had cardboard signs that read: “Beach Closed.” But at Crabby Bills, just across the street from the Gulf of Mexico, nearly every outdoor table was full.

The area’s beaches were staging a brave comeback, but it is going to be a long road.

Indian Rocks Beach
Indian Rocks Beach, Florida, was closed Oct. 29, 2024. Contact communities directly to learn the status of amenities.
Courtesy Terry Ward

The official word on what to expect

Snowbirds who’ve visited the affected areas before and plan to come back this winter should be prepared for things to be different than they remember in the affected areas.

The best way to know the situation in the place you plan to visit on Florida’s Gulf Coast is to reach out directly to the community or property, says Robin Miller, president and CEO of Tampa Bay Beaches Chamber of Commerce.

“So, if you’re staying in Indian Rocks Beach call Indian Rocks City Hall. Or if it’s a condo or a hotel in that particular city, connect with them and they can give you the most clear and up-to-date information,” she says.

Nearly three weeks after Milton hit, officials in Clearwater were doing some testing of the water to determine its safety, says Mayor Bruce Rector. “With every storm things get mixed around in the water; we’re never exactly sure what gets mixed around and what levels,” he says.

In early November, the Florida Department of Health resumed its Florida healthy beaches testing program, which tests for bacteria in the water. The results from Pinellas County beaches, including Clearwater and Indian Rocks Beach, came back good.

When visitors arrive for snowbird season, “Will there still be debris? Yes. Will there still be buildings damaged? Yes,” he says. “They’ll still see remnants for a long time of these two devastating hurricanes. But they’re going to have largely the same experience that they’ve always had enjoying and visiting Clearwater and Florida during the winter.”

About 80 percent of the community of St. Petersburg and Clearwater is open for business, says Brian Lowack, president and CEO of Visit St. Pete/Clearwater. He pointed to several scheduled upcoming events as testament that the area is moving in the right direction with recovery.

Visit Florida’s president and CEO, Dana Young, said her organization is in close contact with destination partners regarding their plans to reopen to travelers in the wake of the storms.

Sarasota and Bradenton-area beaches, including Anna Maria Island and Longboat Key, were also hard-hit by the storms and in the process of recovering.

And in Charlotte County, home to Punta Gorda, Englewood and Manasota Key, restoration efforts are also underway.

Sean Doherty, tourism director of Punta Gorda/Englewood Beach Visitor & Convention Bureau, says visitors should recognize that some areas, including Manasota Key’s public beaches, are not currently open to the public as restoration continues.

Clearwater Beach
Clearwater Beach, Florida, was sparsely populated three weeks after Hurricane Milton hit.
Courtesy Terry Ward

Doherty recognizes the uncertainties around the timeline for the reopening of public beaches and Manasota Key, but he notes nearly all restaurants, attractions and lodging are open or will open in November. “This ensures that snowbirds have plenty of restaurants and activities to enjoy in the area,” he says.

Homeowners and snowbirds recalibrate their plans

Scenes of damage and recovery efforts unfold in North Redington Beach, says Tampa resident Scott Slack. He and his wife bought a ground-floor vacation condo a block from the beach in 2020.

During Hurricane Helene, the condo took on 4.5 feet of water, he says. The couple had to cancel and refund their snowbird renters who arrive each year from Massachusetts and Connecticut and planned to stay from January through May 2025. The financial losses of not being able to rent their condo this year will cost the Slacks $4,000 in rental revenue per month, he says.

“It’s tough,” he says, adding that he thinks the area has a long way to go before recovery is complete. “The restaurant at the DoubleTree across the street is open,” but the hotel wasn’t open at the time of the interview. The hotel reopened Oct. 27. “There’s no tiki bar, there’s no pool.”

He hopes his condo will be back in shape to take reservations for the 2026 season.

“Our goal was to retire there and make beach memories during the summer with the kids,” Slack says. “Now I don’t think it’s a good idea to retire on a first-floor unit. For us now, it’s a rental property only.”

On Manasota Key, one of the Gulf Coast barrier islands hardest hit by Hurricane Milton, residents whose homes and rental properties have been destroyed are deciding what’s next.

Bill Szumanski, 64, from Traverse City, Michigan, has spent part of the last seven winters together with his wife enjoying the mild temperatures and beautiful beaches of Manasota Key during snowbird season. He learned the apartment the couple usually rents near the beach at the Beachcomber complex was rendered unlivable after the storms. Szumanski says he told the owners that he’d understand if they were unable to refund his security deposit. “My few thousand dollars is nothing compared to what other people have lost,” he says. 

He and his wife still plan to return to Florida for part of snowbird season this year and have rented a place just south of Manasota Key, in the nearby community of Rotonda West, for five weeks in February and March. Many of the friends the couple has made over the years are still in the area, Szumanski says, and staying close by lets them help locals as they recover.

“Anything we could do to get over onto the Key to help support them by spending money there, we’re going to do that,” he says.

For people wondering whether Florida is still a good bet for a snowbird escape this winter, it’s important to remember that the state offers hundreds of miles of coastline in addition to many sun-filled inland communities to visit.

“Florida is a big state, and the majority of our incredible destination’s offerings were unaffected by the storms,” Young said.

Amelia Island in the north, Destin in the Panhandle and Cocoa Beach east of Orlando are among the many destinations open, unscathed by this year’s hurricane season and welcoming snowbirds. Cast a wide net and you’re sure to come up with someplace great to warm up in the Florida sun this winter. 

Terry Ward is a longtime travel writer who has lived in Australia, New Zealand and France. She’s now based in Tampa, Florida.

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